Remote monitoring system for exterminating pest and a method thereof

ABSTRACT

A remote monitoring system for exterminating pest comprises at least one sensor, installedd at a plurality of zones of a subject site, for sensing movement of the pest in the zones, and producing and transmitting detection signals corresponding to the movement; at least one remote controller installed at the subject site, for receiving the detection signals and processing and transmitting the received detection signals; and a central control apparatus for receiving information from at least one remote controller, analyzing the information and managing the analyzed information by the zones.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a remote monitoring system forexterminating pest and a method thereof, and more particularly to aremote monitoring system for exterminating or preventing pest bydetecting and monitoring their invasion and activity in a remote place.

BACKGROUND ART

Pest brings tremendous losses, by invading houses or buildings anddamaging to buildings and facilities, giving unpleasant feelings toresidents, and carrying germs and pathogenic organisms. Accordingly,various methods for exterminating and preventing pest and their invasionhave been proposed. Herein, the term “pest” represents all harmfulinsects and animals, such as cockroaches, ants, rats and weasels, andharmful birds.

In a conventional pest control method, a pest control service technician(hereinafter, “service technician”) visits a building (hereinafter,“pest control subject site”) and understands the situation by personallyinvestigating the circumstances and interviewing the residents, andtakes measures for pest control accordingly.

A problem with the conventional method is that it is difficult to obtaindetailed information with respect to the ecology of the pest inside thepest control subject site, such as invasion paths of the pest, locationof activity, types, chemicals to which the pest have tolerance, unlessthe service technician personally visits and closely investigates thesite. In case a pest control measure is established by obtaininginformation through site visits, a large cost of human resources andextra expenses are incurred. Further, the amount and credibility ofinformation with regard to the pest and the efficiency of the pestcontrol are very dependent on the skill of the individual servicetechnicians.

To resolve such problems, automated systems and methods, which enable aservice technician to know the status of pest without visiting a pestcontrol subject site, have been proposed. These conventional systems andmethods, however, lack means for effectively performing pest control.Especially, these conventional systems and methods do not considercharacteristics of zones or sections in a building even though theappearance and activity of the pest may be different from zone to zonein the same pest control subject site, according to the circumstances ofeach site. Accordingly, even if information required to perform pestcontrol is obtained, the efficiency of the pest control may not beoptimized since the obtained information is not systematically managedfor each zone in a building. For example, when revisiting the pestcontrol subject site, the service technician has to check again eachlocation where the appearance of the pest is detected. Otherwise, he hasto apply the pest control measure to the whole pest control subject siteeven when only some zones or sections in that building are invaded bythe pest despite of inefficiency and excessive use of chemicals.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, an objective of the present invention is to provide a methodand a system for systematically obtaining and maintaining information onthe pest ecology and pest control history with respect to a pest controlsubject site.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide a remotemonitoring system for exterminating pest by centrally collecting andmanaging in a remote place the information on pest ecology and pestcontrol history collected from each of pest control subject sites.

Yet another objective of the present invention is to provide a remotemonitoring method for exterminating pest by collecting and managing theinformation on pest ecology according to zones, thereby effectivelyperforming pest control on the pest control subject sites.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objectives and aspects of the invention are apparentfrom the following description of embodiments with reference to theaccompanying drawing.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a remote monitoring system forexterminating pest in accordance with a first embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a relationship among sensors, repeaters, a remotecontroller, and a central control apparatus of the remote monitoringsystem in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows an example of sectioning a pest control subject site inaccordance with the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a remotemonitoring apparatus in the remote monitoring system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of a centralcontrol apparatus in the remote monitoring system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a table representing an analysis result for the activities ofcockroaches in a zone.

FIGS. 7 a to 7 c are alarm tables used for determining a pest controltime by a module for determining pest control time.

FIG. 8 is an application table for determining which alarm table shouldbe applied based on zone codes.

FIGS. 9 a and 9 b show examples of reports produced by the centralcontrol apparatus of the remote monitoring system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart of a main operation of the remote monitoringapparatus of the remote monitoring system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart of a main operation of the central controlapparatus of the remote monitoring system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of a remote monitoring system forexterminating pest in accordance with a second embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of a central control apparatus inaccordance with the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of a remote monitoring system forexterminating pest in accordance with a third embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a remote monitoring apparatus inaccordance with the third embodiment of the present invention.

MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

A remote monitoring system for exterminating pest, comprises at leastone sensor, installed at a plurality of zones of a subject site, forsensing movement of the pest in the zones, and producing andtransmitting detection signals corresponding to the sensed movement; atleast one remote controller, installed at the subject site, forreceiving said detection signals and processing and transmitting thereceived detection signals; and a central control apparatus forreceiving information from said remote controller, analyzing andmanaging the information by the zones.

The remote controller preferably comprises: a receiving module forreceiving the detection signals from the sensor; a detection informationprocessing module for receiving and processing the detection signals,and collecting pest-related information; and a transmitting module fortransmitting the processed pest-related information to the centralcontrol apparatus.

The remote controller preferably comprises a transmission timedetermining module for determining whether to transmit the pest-relatedinformation immediately or not; and a memory for temporally storing aprocess result of the pest-related information for predetermined perioduntil the pest-related information is tramsmitted, in case that thetransmission time determining module determines not to transmit thepest-related information immediately.

The central control apparatus preferably comprises: a pest-relatedinformation analyzing module for receiving and analyzing, in each of thezones, the pest-related information transmitted from the remotecontroller, a pest-related information managing module for, in a form ofdatabase, storing, updating and managing the pest-related informationtransmitted from the remote controller, a database managed by thepest-related information managing module; a pest control timedetermining module for determining whether to perform a pest controlwork immediately or not on the basis of the analysis result from thepest-related information analyzing module; and a communication modulefor performing wired/wireless communications.

Preferably, the pest-related information analyzing module decides gradeof each sensor on the basis of population of the detected pest, and thepest control time determining module determines a pest control time ofeach zone on the basis of the grade of each sensor in each zone.

Further, a remote monitoring method for exterminating pest comprises thesteps of: sectioning a subject site into a plurality of zones;collecting pest-related information by sensing pest in active at each ofthe sectioned zones; transmitting the collected pest-related informationto a central control apparatus; analyzing the pest-related informationtransmitted; updating and storing the analyzed pest-related informationby comparing it with pre-stored information in a database; anddetermining a pest control time on the basis of the analyzedpest-related information.

The step of sectioning the subject site further comprises a step ofsectioning the subject site into a plurality of physical zones.

Alternatively, the step of sectioning the object further comprises astep of sectioning each zone within the object based on a function ofeach zone.

The step of sectioning the subject site further comprises a step ofsectioning each area within the subject site into a plurality of minimumunits on which the pest control is to be performed.

Codes are assigned to the minimum units, and the step of analyzing thepest-related information further comprises a step of arranging thepest-related information by the codes assigned to the minimum units.

Now, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Referring to FIG. 1, a schematic diagram shows a remote monitoringsystem for exterminating pest in accordance with a first embodiment ofthe present invention.

As illustrated, the remote monitoring system in accordance with thefirst embodiment of the present invention comprises remote monitoringapparatus 100 and central control apparatus 200. Remote monitoringapparatus 100 is installed at each building 10, 12, 14, i.e., the pestcontrol subject site, and monitors the activities of pest, collectsinformation related to the activities, and transmits the collectedinformation through wireless communication network 300 or wiredcommunication network 400, such as the Internet or a public switchedtelephone network. Central control apparatus 200 receives theinformation related to pest transmitted from remote monitoring apparatus100, analyzes the received information, and manages the analyzedinformation. Herein, the term “subject site” means a building at whichpest appear or may appear, or predetermined spaces (including publicgardens, spaces for loading freights, etc.) and outer area of thebuilding or predetermined spaces.

Remote monitoring apparatus 100, which is installed at each of buildings10, 12 and 14, monitors the activities of pest and collects information(hereinafter, “pest-related information”), such as the population ornumber of invaded or captured pest, invasion time, invasion paths,activity sites, and the like, per each type of pest. Preferably, thepest-related information is collected by using predetermined sensorseach of which is suitable for sensing specific type of pest, wherein thesensors are decided according to the types of the pest that are expectedor have been reported to invade or be present Detailed descriptions ofthe sensors will be made with reference to FIG. 4.

The collected pest-related information is transmitted to central controlapparatus 200 in real time or periodically through wirelesscommunication network 300 or wired communication network 400. Thecommunication networks may be selected from among a public switchedtelephone network, cables for high-speed Internet, and wireless localarea network (LAN) according to the types and conditions of the sites10, 12, and 14, in which the remote monitoring apparatus 100 has beeninstalled.

Central control apparatus 200 receives and analyzes the pest-relatedinformation transmitted from remote monitoring apparatus 100.Preferably, the pest-related information is analyzed to thereby obtaininformation on, for example, the frequency of appearance and populationof pest appearing or captured, based on predetermined analyticcategories that are classified by buildings, positions in each building,time and dates and types of pest. Detailed descriptions of analyzing thepest-related information will be made with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6. Apest control measure against pest active in each site is prepared basedon the analyzed information in central control apparatus 200. Herein, apest control measure may be prepared according to the types of activepest, for instance. If it is decided that a pest control operation isrequired, then the service technician visits a pest control subject siteand performs the proper pest control operation based on the analyzedinformation.

The central control apparatus 200 generates secondary information, whichis useful for pest control in, for example, appropriately determining apest control time, by storing and updating the pest-related informationin the database and analyzing it as needed. The central controlapparatus 200 may produce a pest control report periodically or aperiodically, as needed. Hereinafter, the place at which the centralcontrol apparatus 200 is installed is called as a “central controlcenter.”

Referring to FIG. 2, a relationship among sensors 1002, repeaters 1010,remote controller 1004, and central control apparatus 200 is shown. Therepeaters 1010 are provided for conducting effective wirelesscommunications between sensors 1002 and remote controller 1004. Remotemonitoring apparatus 100 has a structure in which a single repeater 1010is coupled to one or more sensors 1002 and remote controller 1004 iscoupled to one or more repeaters 1010.

In the present invention, to manage the pest-related informationefficiently, a subject site in a remote place is sectioned into aplurality of zones. Sectioning herein means to divide hierarchically asubject site including a building into a plurality of zones according tothe characteristics of the area. In one embodiment of the presentinvention, a four-stage sectioning is applied to a subject site. In theembodiment, the four-stage sectioning divides a subject site (e.g., anindustrial complex as a whole) into a large group including buildings inthe industrial complex and their outer blocks; a floor group includingeach floor in the buildings; a middle group that is a sub-group of thefloor group; and a small group that is a sub-group of the middle group.The small group is a minimum unit of sectioning. However, if additionalzones in the industrial complex need to be monitored, then the smallgroup may be further sectioned For example, as shown in FIG. 3,production buildings, storehouses, and outer blocks in a factory belongto the large group; floors of the production buildings, such as 1^(st)basement, 1^(st) floor, 2^(nd) floor, 3^(rd) floor, and rooftop, belongto the floor group; production lines 1, 2 and 3 on each floor belong tothe middle group; and a production department, a storage department, anaging room, and a lavatory in each of the production lines belong to thesmall group. Those sectioned groups are fundamental units (zones thatare typically sectioned by the small grouping, are the minimum units forpest control) for pest control and pest control measures, and are usedfor analysis and management of pest-related information. For example,analyzing the progress of pest outbreak and effectiveness of pestcontrol is performed on each production line belonging to the middlegroup to produce pest-related information. An appropriate pest controlmeasure and control equipment are prepared for each production line byusing the pest-related information when reforming or increasingproduction lines.

A zone code is assigned to each zone, which is a unit of the smallgroup. Each facility in a remote place is classified and zone codes areassigned thereto based on the functions of zones in the facility and/ortendency of the pest outbreak thereof. If zone codes of different zonesare identical with each other, then a similar tendency of pest outbreakwould be expected in such different zones. For zones belonging todifferent small groups, identical zone codes may be assigned since thezone codes are classified by the functions of zones. For example, evenif a computer room and an office room in an office building belong todifferent small groups, identical zone codes may be assigned to thembecause they have similar characteristics in terms of pest control andpest control is done in a similar way. Further, even if zones belong toan identical type of small group, different zone codes may be assignedto them by taking into account their middle groups, floor groups, andlarge groups. For example, although kitchens in a house and in alarge-scale restaurant belong to an identical small group, differentzone codes may be assigned since the characteristics of the house andthe large-scale restaurant are different. By using the zone codes, onecan easily find and understand the characteristics and functional zonesof a subject site and quickly establishes an appropriate pest controlmeasure, even though the pest control subject site has a complexstructure.

In the embodiment of the invention, a subject site is sectioned based onphysical units of the building, (such as floors and productions lines)but the criteria for sectioning in the present invention is not limitedthereto. For example, a middle group of a subject site may be classifiedby whether a wired or wireless communication system is suitable for thearea A department store, for example, has a first space including shopswhere there are many obstacles to a wireless communication, such aspartitions for separating shops from each other, and a second spaceincluding a swimming pool and exercising machines where there is noobstacle to communication. Here, middle groups of the first and secondspaces are determined by the type of communication. With reference tothe determined middle groups, sensors for wired communication may beinstalled in the first space and sensors for wireless communication maybe installed in the second space. The service technician cansystematically install sensors required for each zone of the subjectsite based on the determined middle group of the site.

FIG. 4 shows a schematic block diagram of remote monitoring apparatus100 in the remote monitoring system shown in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 4, remote monitoring apparatus 100 comprises at leastone sensor 1002 and remote controller 1004. Sensors 1002, which areinstalled at predetermined positions of pest control subject site 10,20, and 30, detect the movements of pest, and provide detection signalscorresponding to the movements. Remote controller 1004 receives andprocesses the detection signals, and transmit processed signals throughwired or wireless communication. Herein, the “detection signals”represent whether or not pest are detected, and are produced by sensors1002 and transmitted to remote controller 1004. In FIG. 4, a solid linebetween nth sensor 1002.n and repeater 1010 represents wiredcommunication and lightening symbols indicate wireless communication.

Locations for installing sensors and the number of sensors 1002 aredetermined by characteristics of respective zones in sectioned pestcontrol subject sites 10, 20, and 30. More than one types of sensors maybe used for each of pest control subject sites 10, 20, and 30.Preferably, various sensors are used to properly monitor several typesof pest, for example, first sensor 1002.1 for insects such ascockroaches, second sensor 1002.2 for flying insects such as mosquitoesand flies, and Nth sensor 1002.N for harmful animals such as rats. Inone embodiment of the present invention, sensors 1002 are installed tomeasure the amount of pest activity in a subject site. Sensors 1002, forexample, may be implemented by additionally installing a heat detectoror a movement detector to conventional pest control equipment, such asan insect luring light, an automatic chemical exposure dispenser, and aluring frame for capturing rodents. Sensors 1002 may also be installedtogether with pest control device having a birdlime. The degree of pestactivity is decided by measuring the population or number of pest luredor captured by using the above equipment.

Locations for installing sensors and the number of sensors 1002 aredetermined by the type and population of the pest to be exterminated.These may be determined by pest ecology, and the circumstances andlocation of a specific building. Further, locations for installingsensors and the number of sensors 1002 may be determined based on zonecodes assigned to zones of the pest control subject site.

According to the present invention, through the sectioning of thesubject site, it becomes easy to manage the positions of sensors 1002installed in each zone and to analyze, utilize, and maintain thepest-related information produced by sensors 1002. Without sectioning,the service technician must identify the position of each sensor 1002 ona drawing of the subject site or represent the positions in an absoluteor relative coordinate system in a complex manner. In the remotemonitoring system in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention, the positions of sensors 1002 installed in the subject sitemay be identified and used with ease and accuracy since the locationsare stored in central control apparatus 200 together with information onthe sectioned zones. If sensors 1002 are not easily located, a servicetechnician cannot obtain accurate pest-related information. In addition,a captured pest may be kept for long time in pest control equipment sothat it may become a new habitat for pest.

Further, in one embodiment of the present invention, due to thesectioning, not only the locations and the number of sensors installedin each zone but also the pest-related information may be managed inrelation with the sectioning information, and thus, pest-relatedinformation can be managed and analyzed per zone. Therefore, usefulinformation that is effective for pest control in each sectioned zonecan be derived from the pest-related information.

Sensors 1002 produce detection signals in response to sensing of thepest. The detection signals are transmitted to remote controller 1004together with identification signal unique to each sensor 1002 andtime-stamp information through wired or wireless communication.

The detection signals may be transmitted from sensors 1002 to remotecontroller 1004 through repeaters 1010. If the pest control subjectsites 10, 12, and 14 occupy a large area or have complicated structure,repeaters 1010 are necessary. The number of repeaters 1010 is determinedbased on the dimension of the pest control subject sites 10, 12, and 14and the number of sensors 1002. Generally, installation of the system iseasy if transmission of information is done through wirelesscommunication among sensors 1002, repeaters 1010, and remote controller1004. However, it may be preferable to install communication linesbetween repeater 1010 and sensor (e.g., Nth sensor 1002.n) when the costis considered depending on the structure and internal configuration ofthe pest control subject sites 10, 12, and 14 and furniture andfacilities arranged therein.

Remote controller 1004 primarily stores and processes the detectionsignals and the identification signals from sensors 1002, and transitthem to central control apparatus 200. Remote monitoring apparatus 100is installed at selected positions in buildings 10, 12, and 14. Thepositions should be decided considering the type of communication (i.e.,wireless or wired communication), types and conditions of pest controlsubject sites 10, 12, and 14, and distributions of sensors, such thatsecure communications are guaranteed and the sensors are not subject tomechanical damage or breakdown.

As shown in FIG. 4, remote controller 1004 comprises functional modulessuch as detected information processing module 1006, receiving module1008, transmitting module 1009, transmission time determining module1011, memory 1012, and data input module 1014. Functions of the moduleswill be briefly explained below.

Receiving module 1008 receives the detection signals and otherinformation from sensors 1002 or repeaters 1010, and transfers them todetection-information processing module 1006. Detection-informationprocessing module 1006 processes the detection signals to collectpest-related information. Pest-related information contains, forexample, types and population of invaded or captured pest, invasiontime, invasion path, and invasion place. Other information may beproduced according to the types and arrangement of sensors 1002.Pest-related information, which has been processed, is transferred totransmitting module 1009 and transmitting module 1009 transmits it tocentral control apparatus 200. Transmission time determining module 1011determines whether to transmit the pest-related information to centralcontrol apparatus 200 periodically or in real time. Memory 1012 may beused to store the pest-related information of the subject site. Datainput module 1014 is used for the service technician to manually inputother pest-related information that is not detected by sensors 1002.Also, it may be used to correct errors, if any, of the pest-relatedinformation.

Detailed explanation of remote controller unit 1004 will followhereinafter.

Detection-information processing module 1006 of remote controller 1004processes the detection signals transmitted from the respective sensors1002.1 to 1002.n based on the specific identifications of sensors andthe time-stamp information. If no detection signal is transmitted for along time or signals over a predetermined range are transmitted fromsensors 1002, detection-information process module 1006 determines thata specific sensor 1002 has failed and generates sensor failure signalsindicating an abnormal status of the sensor 1002. Detection-informationprocessing module 1006 transforms the pest-related information into aformat suitable for transmission to central control apparatus 200.

Transmitting module 1009 of remote controller 1004 transmits thepest-related information or the sensor failure signals to centralcontrol apparatus 200 through wireless communication 300 or wiredcommunication 400.

Transmission time determining module 1011 of remote controller 1004determines whether the pest-related information is transmitted fromremote controller 1004 to central control apparatus 200 periodically(for example, for a certain period in the middle of night) or in realtime. Preferably, determination as to whether to transmit periodicallyor in real time is performed by taking into account conditions such asthe types of pest monitored, and types and conditions of thecommunication network and/or power supply used for remote controllerunit 1004. In case of using a public switched telephone network forwired communication 400, the pest-related information may be transmittedto central control apparatus 200 during the night in order to avoidinterruption of daytime calls. However, the transmission timedetermining module 1011 of remote place control unit 1004 may be set toimmediately transmit the pest-related information when particular pest,such as rats, appear, or when pest appear in abnormal frequency. Whenthe pest-related information is transmitted periodically, it is storedin memory 1012 for a predetermined period. The pest-related informationmay be classified by time period, e.g., periods for 0 to 8 o'clock, 8 to16 o'clock, and 16 to 24 o'clock and separately stored in memory 1012.The pest-related information may be also classified by various othercriteria and stored in memory 1012.

Data input module 1014 of remote controller 1004 maybe used for theservice technician or a user of the subject site to input otherpest-related information, which are not easily collected through sensors1002. For example, if pest control is performed based on only thepest-related information collected through sensors 1002, information onplaces where sensors are not installed cannot be obtained. Further, thereliability of the information is affected by incorrect informationresulting from an accumulation of errors due to minor operation failuresof sensors 1002. Data input module 1014 solves the above problem byallowing a service technician or a user of subject site inputsupplementary information. Like the pest-related information collectedby sensors 1002, the supplementary information is also transmitted tocentral control apparatus 200 through transmitting module 1009.

The above-described functional modules 1006, 1008, 1009, 1012, and 1014of remote controller 1004 may be implemented with hardware specificallydesigned to perform the above-explained functions, or software modulesprogrammed to perform the functions in general hardware.

Referring to FIG. 5, a schematic block diagram is shown of an embodimentof the central control apparatus in the remote monitoring system shownin FIG. 1.

As shown, central control apparatus 200 comprises pest-relatedinformation analyzing module 2002, pest-related information managingmodule 2006, database 2010, communication module 2012, and pest controltime determining module 2014. Pest-related information analyzing module2002 receives the pest-related information transmitted periodically orin real time from remote monitoring apparatus 100 and analyze it.Pest-related information managing module 2006 stores, updates, andmanages the pest-related information in database 2010. Database 2010 ismanaged by pest-related information managing module 2006. Communicationmodule 2012 performs wired/wireless communications. Pest control timedetermining module 2014 determines the time when pest control needs tobe performed. Central control apparatus 200 may further comprise reportproducing module 2008 for producing a report periodically or as neededwith regard to the pest-related information (Report producing module2008 is depicted with a dotted line in FIG. 5 to represent that it is anoptional component).

Pest-related information analyzing module 2002 receives the pest-relatedinformation through communication module 2012 and analyzes it accordingto various categories. Specifically, pest-related information analyzingmodule 2002 analyzes the pest-related information to obtain data such asfrequency of occurrence or invasion, the number of appearance andinvasion, and the like, by various categories such as the building inwhich remote monitoring apparatus 100 is located, locations at whichsensors 1002 are installed in each zone of a sectioned site, date andtime, types of pest, and zone codes, or various other criteria used forperforming pest control.

For example, the pest-related information classified by zone codes canbe used to prepare a pest control measure with respect to a subject siteas follows. If subject sites are a plurality of large-scalesupermarkets, each having similar structure, then these supermarketswould be comprised of similar zones. In this case, an appropriate pestcontrol measure may be obtained by comparing, among the large-scalesupermarkets, the pest-related information of zones having identicalzone code. For example, a service technician utilizes a relative valueof pest appearance frequency for a particular zone code, as well as anabsolute value of pest appearance frequency in each large-scalesupermarket to establish a pest control measure. For example, in casethe pest-related information of store zones in two large-scalesupermarkets A and B are similar but pest appear more frequently in awarehouse zone of supermarket A than in that of supermarket B, theservice technician determines that a pest generating factor exists inthe warehouse of large-scale supermarket A rather than that ofsupermarket B so that an additional pest control measure is required forlarge-scale supermarket A.

In one embodiment of the present invention, pest-related informationanalyzing module 2002 decides grade for each sensor 1002 preferably inreal time based on the number of pest detected by each sensor 1002. Forexample, pest-related information analyzing module 2002 decides thegrade of each sensor 1002 as grade L1 when the number of detected pestis 1 to 3, grade L2 when the number of detected pest is 4 to 10, andgrade L3 when the number of detected pest is 11 to 20. When the numberof detected pest increases, the grade of each sensor 1002 goes up and,after the pest control operation is performed, the grade is reset. Thegrade of each sensor 1002 is useful for monitoring a status of pestappearance and determining whether or not an emergency pest controlmeasure is required (detailed description will follow). Also, theanalyzed information in pest-related information analyzing module 2002may contain data regarding a history of pest appearance in each zone.With reference to the historical data, the service technician determineswhether or not new pest have originated, whether or not a new invasionpath has appeared, and whether or not pest control chemicals areeffective. Preferably, the categories used for analyzing thepest-related information are easily added or deleted, as needed.

Pest-related information managing module 2006 stores in database 2010the pest-related information transmitted from remote monitoringapparatus 100 periodically or in real time. Specifically, pest-relatedinformation managing module 2006 receives the pest-related informationnewly transmitted from remote monitoring apparatus 100 and adds to orupdates the information stored in database 2010. Preferably, the variouscategories, which are used by pest-related information analyzing module2002, are stored and managed in database 2010.

Pest control time determining module 2014 determines whether or not pestcontrol operation is required immediately based on the analyzed resultof pest-related information analyzing module 2002. In case of emergency,pest control time determining module 2014 notifies an alarm to theservice technician.

Now, an example of how pest control time determining module 2014utilizes the result by pest-related information analyzing module 2002(hereinafter, “analysis result”) is described in detail with referenceto FIGS. 6 to 8.

FIG. 6 shows a table representing an analysis result as to theactivities of cockroaches in a selected zone of the pest control subjectsite.

As shown in FIG. 6, the analysis result contains the number of detectedcockroaches and grades assigned to each sensor for each of the tensensors installed in the zone. As seen from the table, the selected zonecontains three L1-graded sensors (1˜3 cockroaches detected) and oneL2-graded sensor (4˜10 cockroaches detected). The analysis result pereach type of pest in each zone is provided as shown in FIG. 6 bypest-related information analyzing module 2002, preferably in real time.

Pest control time determining module 2014 determines a pest control timeusing the analysis results as follows.

FIGS. 7 a to 7 c show examples of alarm tables used for determining pestcontrol time by pest control time determining module 2014. The alarmtables for rats, cockroaches, and flying insects are shown in FIGS. 7 a,7 b, and 7 c, respectively.

The alarm tables of FIGS. 7 a to 7 c represent how the alarm type, i.e.,one of alarms A, B, and C is determined according to the number ofsensors of grade L1 or L2 of shown in FIG. 6. The alarm type representsthe degree of seriousness of pest status in each zone. In an embodiment,alarm A indicates that the service technician has to carefully performperiodic pest control operation and alarms B and C indicate that theservice technician must perform pest control operation immediately.Alternatively, the service technician may perform the pest controloperation immediately in case alarm C occurs or in case that alarm Boccurs over a predetermined number of times during a certain period.

For example, when rats appear, alarm B is notified when the number ofsensors having grade L1 is 1 to 3, whereas alarm C is notified when thenumber of sensors having grade L1 is over 4 or grade L2 is over 1, asshown in alarm table 1 of FIG. 7 a.

The type of alarm is determined by taking into account the types of pestand zones where pest appear, such that an alarm table may be changedaccording to the characteristics of the zones. For example, tables 1 to3 shown in FIG. 7 b are used for applying three different criteriaaccording to zones, when cockroaches appear. In case that the number ofsensors 1002 having grade L1 is 1, alarm A is notified according totable 1 of FIG. 7 b, whereas alarm B is notified according to table 3.Table 1 of FIG. 7 b is applicable to a zone such as a lavatory and akitchen, where pest may originate at any time, whereas table 3 isapplicable a zone such as a hotel room or a hospital ward, where theappearance of pest causes a serious problem.

Referring to FIG. 8, an application table is shown for determining whichalarm table should be applied according to zone codes (that is,characteristics of zones). This application table may be updated bytaking into account whether or not a subject site requires intensivemonitoring and the special characteristic of zones. Not only for thecockroaches but also for the rats and flying insects, various alarmtables may be used.

Now, the application table will be described in detail with reference tothe analysis result shown in FIG. 6. Herein, a subject site is limitedto guest room No. 1003 and a lavatory on the 10^(th) floor in a hotel A.In this case, hotel A belongs to a large group, the 10^(th) floorbelongs to a floor group, Room No. 1003 belongs to a middle group, andthe guest room and the lavatory belong to a small group.

When fourteen cockroaches appear in the guest room No. 1003, foursensors among ten sensors 1002, which are installed at hotel A/10^(th)floor/No. 1003/guest room, detect the cockroaches and the pest-relatedinformation is transmitted to central control apparatus 200. After that,the pest-related information is analyzed by pest-related informationanalyzing module 2002 according to the locations of the cockroaches'appearance, such that an analysis result as shown in FIG. 6 is obtainedfor each sensor 1002. In this case, pest-related information analyzingmodule 2002 gives grade L1 to sensor-1, sensor-3, and sensor-8, whichsense 1 to 3 cockroaches and grade L2 to sensor-7, which senses 4 to 10cockroaches. With reference to the application table shown in FIG. 8,table 3 of FIG. 7 b is applied to guest room No. 1003. Since the numberof sensors having grade L2 is 1, alarm C is notified, and the servicetechnician performs an immediate pest control.

In case that the cockroaches appear in the lavatory, not in the guestroom, table 1 of FIG. 7 b is applied such that alarm A is notifiedunlike the case of the guest room. As described above, alarm Arepresents that the service technician has to carefully perform periodicpest control operation instead of doing immediate pest control.

However, if pest appear frequently, although not many, in the lavatory,immediate pest control is required even to the lavatory. In this case,pest control tine determining module 2014 utilizes the analysisinformation classified by an appearance frequency. For example, pestcontrol time determining module 2014 may be set to notify alarm B if thenumber of L1-graded sensors is over three in a week, Therefore, thealarm tables of FIGS. 7 a to 7 c, as well as various tables to thepest-related information, may be applied to prepare for pest activity.

Communication module 2012 in central control apparatus 200 performswired/wireless communications with receiving module 1008 in remotemonitoring apparatus 100. Since the technologies for the wired/wirelesscommunications are well known, a description thereof will be omittedhere.

Now, report producing module 2008 will be described in detail withreference to FIGS. 9 a and 9 b. FIGS. 9 a and 9 b show examples ofreports produced by report producing module 2008 of central controlapparatus 200.

As shown in FIG. 9 a, report producing module 2008 produces a pestcontrol report at a predetermined time of a day based on the analysisresult of pest-related information analyzing module 2002. The pestreport of the embodiment may contain the population (number) of detectedpest in each period (e.g., period 1, period 2, and period 3) and in eachbuilding 10, 12, and 14. Facilitating the production of pest controlreport is possible by classifying the pest related information byperiods and buildings and by storing the pest-related information inremote monitoring apparatus 100 or central control apparatus 200. Numberof pest active in each building 10, 12, and 14 is further classified bylocations where sensors 1002 are installed. The number of captured pestdetected by each sensor 1002 is classified by the type of pest and thenrecorded.

FIG. 9 b shows an example of a zone report containing information withrespect to zones of a sectioned subject site. The zone report in FIG. 9b is a report with respect to the production building of FIG. 3, whichis sectioned into four stages.

The zone report is pre-stored in central control apparatus 200 so thatthe service technician may easily perform pest control operation withrespect to each zone of the subject site based on the pre-stored zonereport. After completing the pest control operation, the zone report maybe updated. The zone report of FIG. 9 b contains data fields such as aname of a zone, a location description field, a zone code field,equipment installed in the zone and its quantity field, and whether thezone is a vulnerable zone. Large, floor, middle, and small groups areshown in the second and third rows of the zone report and briefdescription for the location of each zone is provided on the locationdescription field. (The location data enables the service technician toeasily find each zone.) Zone codes corresponding to the zones areprovided in the zone code field. In this embodiment, an identical zonecode is assigned to a production department and a storage department,and therefore, identical equipment is provided to the both departments.The name and quantity of equipment installed at each zone are providedin the equipment/quantity field. The vulnerable zone field is marked incase that the frequency of pest appearance is higher than apredetermined level, or a zone is vulnerable to pest due to otherreason. By examining this zone report, the service technician can easilyunderstand the structure of the subject site. Further, the servicetechnician can easily understand the status of the pest by using thezone report together with the pest-related information. Therefore, byusing this type of report, the service technician easily obtainsnecessary information without relying upon individual memory andexperience. Accordingly, even if the service technician for a specificsubject site is switched, pest control may be effectively performed.Further, pest control is effectively done even if a person who is notassigned to a specific site is sent to the site, as long as the personhas basic skills in pest control. The report in this specificationinclude a report in hardcopy format as well as a screen-display, anelectronic file, and an e-mail format.

By using these reports, the pest-related information, which is obtainedfrom sensors 1002 installed at each sectioned zone, is systemicallytransmitted to the service technician. The service technician thenexamines the pest-related information of each zone to perform pestcontrol operation.

Preferably, the reports are produced by using the analysis result ofpest-related information analyzing module 2002. Such reports can be madeperiodically or as needed. Also, the reports are stored for a certainperiod of time and are statistically re-analyzed according topredetermined categories, thereby being used for pest control.Specifically, by storing and examining short-term reports accumulatedover a long time, (e.g., a month, season, or year) secondary informationrelated to pest control may be obtained from the examined reports. Forexample, if pest-related information in a pest control subject site,which had a similar trend for a long time, indicates a slightlyincreasing trend of pest appearance over a long period of time, then wecan guess that a factor relating to pest appearance is introduced to thesite and was not solved Further, by examining the reports over a longtime, the effects of change of structure of the subject site or changeof chemical for pest control on the pest activity may be observedPest-related information, which is analyzed over a short term, can besampled or averaged by a week or month to be used in deciding a longterm trend.

The reports may contain position information as to where chemicals forexterminating a certain species of pest should be installed and theamount of the chemicals needed. Such data is determined by analyzing thepest-related information according to predetermined categories. In thiscase, the service technician can simply place the chemicals in the pestcontrol subject site based on the report, so that the burdensome work ofchecking the location or amount of the chemicals may be reduced. Thelocations and amount of the chemicals may be determined based on thepest-related information (or secondary information derived from thepest-related information) from sensors 1002 by using a simple algebraicformula or by referencing a look-up table.

Further, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, thereports may contain activity information of a pest to be exterminated ata position where a chemical is used, before and after installing thechemicals for exterminating the pest The reports may be in the form of agraph where one can easily understand the trend. The reports are used toobserve the effect of a chemical on a pest, and in case there is noeffect, to determine that the pest in the corresponding area havedeveloped tolerance to the chemicals used.

By using the zone report, positions of sensors 1002 and pest controlequipment installed in each zone can be effectively managed. In the zonereport, the type and quantity of the pest control equipment installed ineach zone are represented. During pest control, the service techniciantakes proper measures to check as many equipment in each zone asidentified in the zone report, eliminate captured pest, and check thefunction of equipment.

Now, the operation of the remote monitoring system for exterminatingpest in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention will bedescribed in detail with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11.

A main operation of remote monitoring apparatus 100 will be describedwith reference to FIG. 10. FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing the mainoperation of remote monitoring apparatus 100.

As shown, electric power is applied to start the operation (step 600)and components such as remote controller 1004 and sensors 1002 arechecked (steps 604 and 606). As a result, the statuses of remotecontroller 1004 and sensors 1002 are transmitted and reported to centralcontrol apparatus 200 (step 608). Through this status reporting step,central control apparatus 200 becomes ready to communicate with remotecontroller 1004. Preferably, step 608 is periodically performed toperiodically check the status of remote monitoring apparatus 100 incentral control apparatus 200, as well as when the electric power isapplied.

Next, remote monitoring apparatus 100 receives detection signals fromsensors 1002 and collect pest-related information (step 610). Remotemonitoring apparatus 100 then transmits the collected pest-relatedinformation to central control apparatus 200 (step 612).

The control process of the present invention is returned to one of steps604 to 612 (step 614). The above steps do not need to be performedsequentially. Also, from power-on to power-off, all steps do not have tobe repeated for a same number of times.

Main operations of central control apparatus 200 will be described withreference to FIG. 11. FIG. 11 is a flow chart that illustratesconceptually the main operation of central control apparatus 200.

As shown in figure, electric power is applied to start the operation(step 500). Central control apparatus 200 receives a status report,which represents whether or not remote controller 1004 and sensors 1002are in normal state, from remote monitoring apparatus 100 (step 502),and determines whether or not remote controller 1004 and sensors 1002are in abnormal state (step 503). In case that remote controller 1004and sensors 1002 are in normal state, the control process of the presentinvention proceeds to next step. If the status of sensors 1002 or remotecontroller 1004 of remote monitoring apparatus 100 is decided to beabnormal, then, the abnormal state of remote monitoring apparatus 100 isreported to the service technician (step 504). For example, wheresensors 1002 installed in an important zone, such as a guest room of ahotel are out of order, the service technician should immediately repairthe failed sensors. Where the failed sensors are installed in alavatory, the service technician repairs them during regular pestcontrol operation. To obtain a reliable response, central controlapparatus 200 may report the failure of sensors 1002 to the servicetechnician after receiving a failure response of sensors 1002, e.g.,three times.

Next, central control apparatus 200 receives the pest-relatedinformation transmitted from remote monitoring apparatus 100 (step 506).To receive the pest-related information reliably, it should be checkedwhether the communication module 2012 operates normally before step 506.This step is well known to a person skilled in the art, and therefore adetailed description will be omitted herein.

Then, central control apparatus 200 performs the database managementoperation. In other words, central control apparatus 200 compares thereceived pest-related information with the pest-related information thatis pre-stored in database 2010, and updates and stores the informationin database 2010 with the new pest-related information (step 508), asneeded.

Central control apparatus 200 analyzes the pest-related informationstored or updated in database 2010 based on predetermined categories foranalysis (step 510). Preferably, analysis of the pest-relatedinformation is performed so as to find such information as the frequencyof appearance or invasion, and the number of appearing or invading pestbased on the various categories, such as each building where remotemonitoring apparatus 100 are installed, positions of sensors 1002 ineach building, specific time of a day, or species of pest to beexterminated.

Optionally, central control apparatus 200 may produce a reportcontaining the analysis result of the pest-related information (step512). Details of the report will be omitted since it has already beenexplained with reference to FIG. 9A and FIG. 9B. Central controlapparatus 200 transmits the analysis result or the report to a user orservice technical of each site 10, 12, and 14 (step 514). Step 514 alsois an optional step.

The control process of the present invention returns to one of steps 502to 514 (step 516).

The above steps do not need to be performed sequentially or repeated fora same number of times from power-on to power-off.

Now, another embodiment of the present invention will be explained.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram conceptually showing a remote monitoringsystem for exterminating pest in accordance with a second embodiment ofthe present invention. For ease of reference, components identical tothose shown in FIG. 1 have the same reference numerals.

A difference between the first and second embodiments of the presentinvention is that central control apparatus 200 re-transmits theanalysis result of the pest-related information to a user of eachbuilding 10, 12, and 14 and/or the service technician. Specifically, theservice technician receives the analysis result of the pest-relatedinformation using mobile communication terminal 70, such as a personaldigital assistant (DA) or a mobile phone, and performs pest controloperation suitable for each site 10, 12, and 14.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram conceptually showing central controlapparatus 200 in accordance with the second embodiment of the presentinvention.

In the second embodiment, central control apparatus 200 comprisesreceiving module 900 and transmitting module 910 instead ofcommunication module 2012 of first embodiment. Also, central controlapparatus 200 may optionally includes location searching module 920.

In the second embodiment, receiving module 900 receives pest-relatedinformation from remote monitoring apparatus 100 and transmits it topest-related information analyzing module 2002. An analysis result istransmitted from pest-related information analyzing module 2002 tomobile communication terminal 70 of the service technician throughtransmitting module 910 of central control apparatus 200. Thepest-related information is transmitted to the service technicianperiodically, or in response to a demand of the service technician, oraccording to other predetermined transmission protocol. For example, incase the service technician is scheduled to visit a pest control subjectsite, pest-related information of the pest control subject sites to bevisited on a particular day is transmitted to mobile communicationterminal 70 of the service technician on the basis of the visitingschedule. In this embodiment, where an emergency situation occurs in apest control subject site, central control apparatus 200 searcheslocations of service technicians possessing mobile communicationterminal 70 through location searching module 920 and transmitspest-related information to the service technician located nearest tothat building where emergency happened. Location searching module 920may receive location information of mobile communication terminal 70whenever necessary using a global positioning system (GPS) in connectionwith mobile communication providers.

By using mobile communication terminal 70 and location searching module920, paths of movements of service technicians may be effectivelymanaged. For example, since central control apparatus 200 detects thelocation of each of the service technicians through mobile communicationterminal 70, the order of visits for pest control may be effectivelydetermined. If the work flow of pest control is determined such that atechnician can first take care of the site with the least traveldistance or travel time, depending on the traffic condition, the timerequired to travel is reduced so that the efficiency of pest controloperation may be increased.

In accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention, theinterval from the time when an emergency happens to the time when pestcontrol is performed may be shortened. Generally, central controlapparatus 200 is connected to a plurality of remote monitoringapparatuses 100 through wired or wireless communications, and thus, someremote monitoring apparatuses 100 may be located quite far from centralcontrol apparatus 200. In case the service technician receives ananalysis result of pest-related information from central controlapparatus 200 and then goes to a remote pest control subject site, itrequires much time. If rats, which would give a sense of aversion topeople, appear in the subject site, it is important to immediatelyexterminate the rats. In this case, according to the second embodimentof the present invention, the analysis result is automaticallytransmitted to a service technician nearest to the site where the ratsappeared so that the service technician immediately exterminates therats. Since the service technician can check other pest-relatedinformation on the way to the subject site, he may perform a regularexamination and other pest control operation together with theextermination of the rats.

FIG. 14 shows a schematic diagram a remote monitoring system forexterminating pest in accordance with a third embodiment of the presentinvention. For ease of reference, components identical to those shown inFIG. 1 have the same reference numerals.

A difference between the second and third embodiments of the presentinvention is that pest-related information may be directly transmittedfrom remote monitoring apparatus 100 to mobile communication terminal 70in the third embodiment. Although mobile communication terminal 70 shownin FIG. 14 communicates with remote monitoring apparatus 100 by wirelesscommunication, mobile communication terminal 70 can also be configuredto communicate with remote monitoring apparatus 100 by both wired andwireless communication. In the third embodiment of the presentinvention, the service technician may receive an instruction to move toa pest control subject site from remote monitoring apparatus 100installed at that site or central control apparatus 200. He can alsoreceive pest-related information from both.

FIG. 15 shows a schematic diagram of remote monitoring apparatus 100 inaccordance with a third embodiment of the present invention.

Compared to the first embodiment, remote controller 1004 in the thirdembodiment further includes pest-related information analyzing module1018, pest-related information managing module 1022, and terminalconnecting module 1016. Also, optionally, location searching module 1020may be added to remote controller 1004.

Location searching module 1020 installed at remote controller 1004search a location of mobile communication terminal 70. Detailed analysisof information is performed in pest-related information analyzing module1018 in remote monitoring apparatus 100. The procedure for analyzinginformation in pest-related information analyzing module 1018 isidentical to that of central control apparatus 200. An analysis resultis stored in memory 1012 by pest-related information managing module1022. A service technician receives an instruction to go to a pestcontrol subject site through mobile communication terminal 70 and thengo to the site. In the site, the service technician then connects mobilecommunication terminal 70 to terminal connecting module 1016 of remotecontroller 1004 by wired/wireless communication. When mobilecommunication terminal 70 is connected to terminal connecting module1016, terminal connecting module 1016 retrieves the analysis result ofthe pest-related information stored in memory 1012 to transmit to mobilecommunication terminal 70. The service technician performs pest controlon the basis of the analysis result received through mobilecommunication terminal 70. In accordance with the third embodiment ofthe present invention, remote controller 1004 may comprise a reportproducing module (not shown) and transmit a report produced by thereport producing module to mobile communication terminal 70 throughterminal connecting module 1016. For example, after checking a reportincluding information on sectioning of a site through the display ofmobile communication terminal 70, the service technician performs pestcontrol suitable for the structure of the site.

In the third embodiment of the present invention, most of informationrelated to pest is directly transmitted from remote monitoring apparatus100 to mobile communication terminal 70 without using a commercialwireless communication service. As a result, costs for wirelesscommunication may be reduced.

Similar to the second embodiment, location searching module 1020 may beemployed in the third embodiment of the present invention for searchinga location of a service technician nearest to a pest control subjectsite. Further, when an emergency happens, an instruction to move to apest control subject site is directly transmitted from remote monitoringapparatus 100 to mobile communication terminal 70 of a servicetechnician nearest to the pest control subject site.

Although the analysis of the pest-related information is performed inremote controller 1004 in the embodiment explained above, mobilecommunication terminal 70 can be configured to analyze pest-relatedinformation by adding a program or separate hardware to mobilecommunication terminal 70. That is, mobile communication terminal 70 maycomprise a pest-related information analyzing module. The procedure tobe performed in mobile communication terminal 70 is identical to that ofcentral control apparatus 200.

In accordance with the second and third embodiments of the presentinvention, pest control may be performed by a service technician nearestto a pest control subject site. Conventionally, each service technicianis assigned to a corresponding subject site so that only the assignedservice technician performs a pest control in the corresponding subjectsite. As a result, if the service technician for a specific pest controlsubject site is suddenly switched, effective pest control on that siteis very difficult, since new service technician has no systematic dataon the subject site. However, in the second and third embodiments of thepresent invention, service technicians obtain analyzed pest-relatedinformation on a pest control subject site from central controlapparatus 200 or remote monitoring apparatus 100 while moving to thesubject site, so that any one of the service technicians may effectivelyperform pest control.

While the present invention has been shown and described with respect tothe particular embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize thatmany changes and modifications may be made without departing from thescope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

In accordance with the present invention, pest-related information canbe obtained and analyzed according to various categories.

Also, in accordance with the present invention, a central control centersystematically manages pest-related information collected from eachbuilding.

Further, in accordance with the present invention, pest-relatedinformation may be collected and managed, and pest control can beeffectively performed based on the pest-related information.

Furthermore, in accordance with the present invention, the activity andinvasion of pest may be detected in real time using sensors. Pestcontrol measure maybe prepared through collection and analysis of thedetected information. In addition, the invasion of pest may be preventedby surveying regional distribution and seasonal distribution of the pestappearance. Since exact path and time of the pest invasion, and thenumber of pest are examined to prepare a measure, proper position andchemical can be selected based on it, thereby preventing the abuse ofchemicals and the economic loss of human resources and time.

Also, in accordance with the present invention, a service technicianeasily obtains information required for performing pest control withoutrelying on his memory and experience. As a result, even if the servicetechnician is changed, pest control may be effectively performed.

Further, in accordance with the present invention, necessarypest-related information can always be provided to service techniciansand-the time taken to move to a pest control subject site may be reducedby managing the travel paths of service technicians.

1. A remote monitoring system for exterminating vermin, comprising: atleast one sensor, installed at a plurality of zones of a vermin controlsubject building, for sensing movement of the vermin in each zone,producing and transmitting sensed signals corresponding to the movement;at least one remote controller, installed at the vermin control subjectbuilding, for receiving and processing the sensed signals to transmitvermin-related information; a central control apparatus for receivingthe vermin-related information from said at least one remote controller,and processing the vermin-related information for each zone; wherein atleast one remote controller further includes a vermin-relatedinformation analyzing module determining grades for each sensor on thebasis of population of the sensed vermin, and the remote controllerfurther includes a vermin control time determining module thatdetermines a vermin control time of zones on the basis of the grade ofeach sensor, and each zone where said each sensor is installed.
 2. Thesystem of claim 1, further comprising at least one repeater, installedat the vermin control subject building, for receiving the sensed signalsand re-transmitting them to said at least one remote controller.
 3. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein said at least one sensor comprises at leastone out of a first sensor for sensing movement of cockroaches, a secondsensor for sensing movement of rats, and a third sensor for sensingmovement of flying insects.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein said atleast one sensor is implemented by integrating a heat detector or amovement detector to one selected from a group consisting of an insectluring light, an automatic chemical dispenser, and a luring frame forcapturing rodents.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least oneremote controller further comprises: a receiving module for receivingthe sensed signals from said at least one sensor; a sensed informationprocessing module for processing the sensed signals received from thereceiving module and collecting vermin-related information; and atransmitting module for transmitting the vermin-related information tothe central control apparatus.
 6. The system of claim 5, wherein said atleast one remote controller further comprises a data input module forreceiving information related to an outbreak of the vermin from eitheror both of a user of the vermin control subject building and a vermincontrol manager, wherein the information is manually inputted by eitheror both of the user and the vermin control manager.
 7. The system ofclaim 5, wherein said at least one remote controller further comprises:a transmission time determining module for determining whether totransmit the vermin-related information immediately or not; and a memorycapable of temporally storing the vermin-related information until thetransmission of the vermin-related information in case the transmissiontime determining module determining not to transmit the vermin-relatedinformation immediately.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the centralcontrol apparatus further comprises: a vermin-related informationmanaging module for storing and updating the vermin-related informationreceived from said at least one remote controller, thereby managing thevermin-related information; a database for storing the vermin-relatedinformation, which is managed by the vermin-related information managingmodule; and a communication module for performing wire/wirelesscommunications.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein said at least onesensor produces the sensed signals in response to sensing of the verminand the sensed signals are transmitted together with an identificationof each sensor.
 10. The system of claim 8, wherein the central controlapparatus further comprises a location searching module for searching alocation of a mobile communication terminal belonging to a vermincontrol manager, and a vermin-related information analyzing block foranalyzing the vermin-related information, wherein the communicationmodule transmits the analysis result of the vermin-related informationto the mobile communication, terminal searched by the location searchingmodule.
 11. The system of claim 7, wherein: the vermin-relatedinformation analyzing module is used for analyzing the vermin-relatedinformation received from the sensed information processing module; andsaid at least one remote controller further comprises: a vermin-relatedinformation managing module for storing in the memory at least part ofthe vermin-related information and the analysis result of thevermin-related information analyzed by the vermin-related informationanalyzing module and updating the stored information, thereby managingthe information; and a terminal connecting module for transmitting theanalysis result of the vermin-related information from the memory to amobile communication terminal, when the mobile communication terminal isconnected to the terminal connecting module.
 12. The system of claim 7,wherein the transmission time determining module determines to transmitthe vermin-related information at a predetermined time when cockroachesand/or flying insects are sensed, and to transmit immediately thevermin-related information when rats are sensed.
 13. The system of claim1, wherein said at least one sensor and said at least one remotecontroller periodically check a status including a breakdown andtransmit information related to the checked status to the centralcontrol apparatus.
 14. A remote monitoring method for exterminatingvermin, comprising the steps of: sectioning a vermin control subjectbuilding into a plurality of zones; collecting vermin-relatedinformation by sensing active vermin in each of the sectioned zones;transmitting the collected vermin-related information to a centralcontrol apparatus; analyzing the transmitted vermin-related information;updating and storing the analyzed vermin-related information bycomparing with pre-stored information in a database; determining avermin control time on the basis of the analyzed vermin-relatedinformation; searching a location of a vermin control manager; andtransmitting the analyzed vermin-related information to a mobilecommunication terminal belonging to the vermin control manager.
 15. Themethod of claim 14, wherein the sectioning step includes sectioning thevermin control subject building into zones on the basis of a function ofeach zone.
 16. The method of claim 14, wherein the sectioning stepincludes sectioning the vermin control subject building into zones ofminimum unit on which a vermin control work is to be performed.
 17. Themethod of claim 16, further comprising the step of assigning a code toeach zone of minimum unit, wherein the step of analyzing thevermin-related information comprises, arranging the vermin-relatedinformation according to the codes assigned to the zones; and searchinga vermin-related information that is out of a predetermined range whencompared to the other information arranged for the same code.
 18. Themethod of claim 14, wherein the vermin-related information istransmitted at a predetermined time when cockroaches or flying insectsare sensed, and immediately transmitted when rats are sensed.
 19. Themethod of claim 14, wherein the analyzing of the vermin-relatedinformation includes the step of determining population of appearing andcaptured vermin according to one or more categories including locationsin the vermin control subject building, time periods, and the type ofvermin.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the analyzed vermin-relatedinformation is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal togetherwith information of a shortest route from the vermin control manager tothe vermin control subject building.